1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a button cap for covering an outer surface of a button, a fixing member for fixing a button main body to a fabric and a button using the button cap or the fixing member, which are for buttons for holding mating portions of a garment or ornamental buttons mainly used for decorative purposes.
2. Description of Related Art
Buttons include buttons for holding mating portions of a garment and ornamental buttons mainly used for decorative purposes. Such buttons each include a male button and a female button which are fitted to each other. Generally, the male button is attached on one of the mating portions of a fabric and the female button is attached on the other mating portion such that the male and female buttons face each other. By fitting the male button in the female button, the mating portions of the fabric are held together.
The male and female buttons each have a button main body attached on a mating surface of the fabric and a fixing member for fixing the button main body to the fabric by holding the button main body from the other side of the mating surface of the fabric.
FIG. 9 shows a button main body 10 and a fixing member 20 of a prior art female button.
The button main body 10 includes a base cylindrical portion 11 to abut to a fabric 1 and a fitting cylindrical portion 13 integrally formed so as to extend from the base cylindrical portion 11. The fitting cylindrical portion 13 has a cylindrical shape and a larger diameter than that of the base cylindrical portion 11. An opening 12 is formed at the center of a surface of the base cylindrical portion 11, the surface abutting to the fabric 1. The fixing member 20 is inserted through the opening 12 and engaged therein, so that the button main body 10 is fixed to the fabric 1. A male button insertion hole 14 is formed in the fitting cylindrical portion 13 on the opposite side of the mating surface of the fabric 1. Male button engaging springs 15 are accommodated in the fitting cylindrical portion 13.
As shown in FIG. 10, the fixing member 20 includes a fixing member main body 21 and a cap 31 to cover an outer surface of the fixing member main body 21.
The fixing member main body 21 includes a flange portion 22 substantially in a circular plate shape, a connecting cylindrical portion 23 and an engaging axial portion 24 integrally formed from the flange portion 22 via the connecting cylindrical portion 23 at the center of the flange portion 22.
The cap 31 includes a main surface covering portion 32 in a circular plate shape to cover an outer surface of the flange portion 22 and a holding portion 34 to be bent inward in an arc shape from an outer periphery of the main surface covering portion 32 to hold an outer periphery of the flange portion 22.
As one example of such a fixing member, a metal female hock disclosed in JP-63-148205-U is known.
As shown in FIG. 11, the cap 31 has been conventionally manufactured by blanking a circular plate blank 36 out of a plate material with a press machine and then drawing the circular plate blank 36 into a short cylindrical cap 31 with the press machine. The cap 31 has been manufactured to have a short cylindrical shape with the main surface covering portion 32 of the circular plate shape as a bottom wall and the holding portion 34 of the cylindrical shape as an outer peripheral wall.
The flange portion 22 of the fixing member main body 21 is placed in the cap 31 and an end of the cylindrical holding portion 34 is curled inward and clinched, thereby manufacturing the fixing member 20.
The prior art manufacturing method of the cap contains the following disadvantages.
(a) In a blanking process of the circular plate blanks 36 out of the plate material, when the circular plate blanks 36 with the outer circumferences contacting to each other, the outer circumferences may be deformed, so that the blanked-out circular plate blanks 36 are not accurate. To prevent this problem, the adjacent circular plate blanks 36 are disposed with a margin of about 1 mm therebetween in the blanking process of the circular plate blanks 36. After the blanking process, the margin portion is left in a frame shape in the plate material. Thus, the deformation of the outer circumference of the blank 36 is avoided of the blanked in a contacting state with no bridge, such circular plate blanks 36 cannot be accurate. However, providing the margin may reduce the material use efficiency.(b) When clinching the short cylindrical cap 31 obtained by drawing the circular plate blank 36 to a component of the button (for example, the fixing member main body 21), the end of the holding portion 34 continuously extending from the outer periphery of the main surface covering portion 32 needs to be curled inward. In other words, the entire circumference of the peripheral wall of the cylindrical holding portion 34 needs to be clinched, requiring a large load. Hence, a punch or a die used for clinching may be damaged.(c) When a garment with the above-described button is soaked in a liquid for washing or decoration, the liquid may remain in the cap 31 especially in an inner space of the curled portion of the cylindrical holding portion 34, which may cause discoloration or degradation of the garment.(d) In a state in which the cap 31 is clinched to the fixing member main body 21, the entire circumference of the cylindrical holding portion 34, that is, the entire circumference of the clinched portion is curled inward to abut to the fixing member main body 21. Accordingly, when the fixing member main body 21 or the cap 31 has a circular shape, the cap 31 may easily rotate relative to the fixing member main body 21. Hence, when the cap 31 has an image pattern or a character thereon, the orientation of the image pattern or the character may vary. It is not preferable in terms of design.